Recipe: Cracker Crust Pizza

I lifted this crust and sauce directly from Amy Thielen’s 2013 cookbook “The New Midwestern Table.” Her version is baked on a stone and topped with sausage and basil leaves, but I generally opt for a large sheet pan and pop open canned artichoke hearts and roasted peppers instead.

Pizza dough

3/4 cup cool water

1/4 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon sugar

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more as needed

Sauce

2 tablespoons salted butter

1/2 large onion, diced

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 28-ounce can whole plum tomatoes

1 large sprig fresh basil

1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon sugar

Freshly ground black pepper

For the pizza dough: Pour the water, oil, salt and sugar into a large bowl. Add 1 cup of the flour and whisk until smooth. Switching to a wooden spoon, gradually add the remaining flour, stirring until the dough comes together. Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and knead until it is smooth and supple, about 5 minutes. Shape the dough into a rough disk, cover with a cloth, and let rest on a board for at least 30 minutes (and up to 3 hours) before rolling.

For the sauce: Heat a wide saucepan over medium heat and add the butter, onion and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Saute until the onion is very tender, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Pour the tomatoes into a bowl and crush them well by hand. Add the tomatoes, 1/4 cup water, basil sprig, rosemary, sugar, remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a couple of turns of black pepper, and simmer until the sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Discard the basil sprig.

Heat the oven to 500 degrees. Line a 13-by-18-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Roll the dough out into a rectangle large enough to fit on the pan. Top with sauce and desired ingredients such as sausage and cheese. Bake until browned on top and crisp around the edges, 15-20 minutes. Transfer the pizza to a cutting board, swiping the paper out from underneath the pizza. Cut the pizza into small squares and serve immediately.